Who wrote this page. This page is maintained by the Rank and File (RAF) Caucus, which has endorsed Shane Sonderly for President and Justin Falcone for Organizing Chair. It is not an official AWU or Elections Committee page. Where this page and the Elections Committee disagree, the Elections Committee is right: write to elections@alphabetworkersunion.org.
Ballots went out by email on Saturday, October 10. If you are a member in good standing, you should have one.
Can't find your ballot?
Who can vote: members who paid dues for July or August 2026 and have not withdrawn. Members who joined after August dues were assessed and paid September dues can also vote.
Your vote is secret. The bylaws require a secret ballot. We suggest voting from a personal device.
Shane Sonderly for President, Justin Falcone for Organizing Chair. Shane and Justin are running together on leadership development: making it easier for any member to get trained, find a way in, and start work on the issues they care about.
- Read Shane & Justin's leadership development plan
- Talk to Shane: @shane.9009 on Signal, or shanesonderly@gmail.com
The caucus is not endorsing in the Vice President or TVC Chair races.
Within each race, RAF-endorsed candidates are listed first. The order on your ballot may differ.
Read every candidate's official statement: 2026 candidate statements. The Elections Committee removes statements after voting closes.
| Office | Candidates | Term |
|---|---|---|
| President | Shane Sonderly (RAF-endorsed) · Parul Koul (incumbent) | 3 years, ends Nov 26, 2029 |
| Vice President | Olivia Asemota (incumbent, uncontested) | 3 years, ends Nov 26, 2029 |
| Organizing Chair | Justin Falcone (RAF-endorsed) · Alan McAvinney (incumbent) · Gavin Achtemeier | 3 years, ends Nov 26, 2029 |
| TVC Chair | Yurie Murayama · Kirn Gill II (no incumbent) | 1 year, ends Nov 26, 2027 |
All times Pacific.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| Sat, Oct 10 | Ballots emailed |
| Tue, Oct 20, 7:00pm | Last chance to tell the Elections Committee you didn't get a ballot |
| Fri, Oct 23, 11:59pm | Voting closes |
| Sat, Oct 24 | Results emailed to voters through OPAVote |
| Week of Oct 26 | Results posted in the union newsletter |
| Mon, Oct 26 – Fri, Nov 6 | Runoff, for any race where no one won a majority |
| Week of Nov 9 | Runoff results posted in the union newsletter (if there was a runoff) |
| 30 days after results are certified | New Executive Board takes office |
A candidate needs a majority: more than 50% of the votes in their race. If no one gets a majority, the top two candidates go to a runoff from October 26 to November 6. Organizing Chair is the only race with three candidates, so it's the race most likely to need one. Watch for details from the Elections Committee if it does.
The 2023 bylaws describe a ranked-choice (STV) count. This year's Election and Campaign Rules use the majority-and-runoff method instead.
Board and membership meeting minutes live in AWU's groups.io files. You don't need a password to get in.
Without a password, groups.io logs you out about every 30 days. When that happens, repeat these steps.
From the Elections Committee's rules:
Report a possible violation to elections@alphabetworkersunion.org. Formal protests are due within 10 days after results are posted.